The present invention relates to a cuff for a sphygmomanometer comprising a flexible cover having an approximately rectangular area when unrolled and comprising a first short side and a second short side, said cover containing an air chamber in its interior comprising a connection to a monitoring device, and having fixing means on both its surfaces for fixing the cuff around a body limb, in which in the zone adjacent to the second short side of the cover attaching means are provided on both surfaces for temporary attachment to the fixing means.
Cuffs for sphygmomanometers have been known for a long time. They are comprised of a flexible cover, an air chamber connectable by a tube to a monitoring device, and a fixing means. The flexible cover is formed by a soft, usually washable material, contains an air chamber and is the carrier of a fixing means. The air chamber is either located in the flexible cover in the form of a bag or is formed by the flexible cover itself. The fixing means has the purpose of bringing and holding the cuff in the right position when it is wrapped around the arm, the leg or another limb. The fixing means itself is designed in different forms depending on the type of cuff.
In case of cuffs which are put on by the patient himself, a loop, for example in the form of a bow, through which the other end of the cuff is pulled is arranged at one end of the flexible cover. The overlapping part of the cuff is attached to that side of the flexible cover facing away from the patient. Shell-type cuffs are also known where one part of the flexible cover consists of a flexible half-shell; said flexible halfshell permits a loose fixation to the limb concerned, a Velcro-type fastener being additionally necessary for final attachment.
Cuffs put on by another person usually consist of a flexible cover only which may be wrapped around the body limb concerned and fixed around said limb by means of a Velcro-type fastener or another fixation means.
All these known cuffs have in common that the flexible cover consists of an inner side facing the patient and an outer side facing away from the patient. Changing the sides is not possible. The inner part of the flexible cuff may only be attached to the outer part thereof. Therefore, they are suitable either for a left body limb only or a right body limb only, because the tube connecting the air chamber and the monitoring device or the air chamber itself cannot be positioned ideally for both body limbs. In addition, the patient must always pull the overlapping part through the loop in the same direction and fix it to the outer side of the flexible cover in a simpler embodiment.
Blood pressure should always be measured on that limb where the higher values are registered. This is different for every person. In addition, the measurement in patients whose blood pressure is taken several times during 24 hours, must always be carried out on that limb which is under the least stress in the normal course of a day (referred to as the "non-dominant" limb in the technical language). Said non-dominant limb also differs individually.
A cuff which may be wrapped both around a left body limb and a right body limb is known from EP-A-0 251 273. The disadvantage of this known cuff is that it requires two non-changeable sides, one facing towards and the other facing away from the body. Since the same side is always facing the body, the inflatable bag must be turned when moving the cuff from the left to the right limb so as to put the tube on the sphygmomanometer into an ideal position.
Another cuff which may be wrapped both around a left and a right body limb is known from EP-A-0 274 735. This is a cuff for ambulant haemodynamometry which is applied by the patient himself. In this embodiment, the overlapping part is pulled through the loop from different directions, depending on whether a left or right body limb is measured. The inflatable bag which is positioned exchangeably in the interior of the flexible cover must be turned to ensure that the tube to the sphygmomanometer runs in an ideal manner.